12 white roses and a bottle of Pepsi?
by fantafae
Summary: Casey starts having these really strange fellings everytime a certain hockey player touches her. He starts to notice. What will become of this? read and find out
1. Dreams & Aspirations

CHAPTER 1:

Casey McDonald sat on her bed quietly as she finished her history homework for that evening. She could hear Edwin and Lizzie chasing each other through the halls over some worthless toy that hadn't learned to share yet. Marti was on the couch downstairs sleeping peacefully_ just where I left her_ Casey thought. Derek, her stepbrother, had not come home from the date he planned with his lately girlfriend "Vivian" or "Vivi" as he had so grossly dubbed her.

"President Roosevelt was born in…"

Casey couldn't concentrate so? It wasn't a sin. Honestly! The sinful part about her constant distraction was that it was her brother. All she could think about was how sickeningly CLINGY he was with Vivian. Despite his fear of Publicly Displaying his Affections he was still clingy._ I mean holding and opening the door for her? You'd think she was disabled or something. Oh! And don't forget the ENDLESS name calling. "Sweetie, babe, Hun, Dawek…"_

Casey glared as she recalled the conversation she overheard between Vivi and her step brother. Vivi ended it, of course, with a very audible smack on the lips, with her own and a "I'll call you later!!!...Daywy-poo!!" _EW_ Casey added. The grip she held on her pencil tightened dangerously. That was a SICK name. No, seriously, Dawek? What the hell kinda name was THAT? Maybe one for a baby, but….Dawek? She finally decided to take a break from her homework. Casey walked down stairs to the kitchen. She stood there staring at the cabinets when the front door opened and closed. Casey, knowing exactly who it was, ignored it and pulled the milk from the fridge. She grabbed a glass and began to pour the milk when she suddenly felt a strong, loud gust of hot air against her ear. Casey jumped, spilling the milk all over her shirt.

"Dang it, Derek…" She said closing her eyes. Derek snickered as he reached for the milk jug behind his step sister.

"Oh, thanks for the towel, _Dawek_, it really helped." Casey shot at him as he chugged the milk right out of the carton. Derek not understanding the sudden burst of sarcasm frowned and responded:

"I didn't give you a towel, Case, you're either hallucinating or hoping…" then he walked up the stairs to his room, leaving poor Casey to clean up the mess.

Casey, all cleaned and somewhat dry, was on her way to her room when she heard a soft _thud_ coming from the other side of her door. The door was open just enough for Casey to see someone looking through her desk. Casey threw open the door and glared at the intruder. The figure spun around to face her. Derek. The bane of her existence. The plank in her eyes. The stitch in her side. The, well, you get the idea.

"Casey…uh…" he looked down at the objects currently residing in his grasp, her diary and safety scissors.

"Derek…what are you doing?" she asked, slightly panicked.

"Oh, I was looking for…" he blanched. Casey could tell he was making up one of his 'on the second stories'

"I was looking for your…"

"My what?"

"mthhmrk…" he mumbled

"My WHAT?!?" she was confused; she knew '_mthhmrk'_ meant something in derekinian, but she didn't speak that language.

"Your math homework." He said with a sigh "I'm looking for your math…." Casey rested against the doorframe and crossed her arms over her chest.

"My math homework." she smiled smugly

"Yes, alright?", he threw her diary onto her bed, a safe distance from his prying eyes.

"And did you even _think_ about looking in my book bag?" she asked, walking over to pull her math notebook from her backpack and holding it to dangle in front of his face. Derek grabbed for it, but Casey being better with the reflexes, pulled it back before he could even touch it.

"Nuh uh, what do I get out of this?"

"The pride that you helped a lesser student achieve his dreams?

"What 'dreams'?" she asked, skeptically rolling her eyes

"The dreams where his girlfriend only likes guys that are good at math."

"Ooooh boy, you know it's not nice to lie 'Dawek'"

"Now that's not nice."

"So your girlfriend is allowed to call you names but that girl that you live with isn't?"

"Well, yeah…you're…different…" Dereks face suddenly turned brilliant red, throwing Casey into another case of confusion. Casey went up and grabbed her diary off her bed and placed it in her desk.

"I better, uh, go…" Derek fled her room and ran to his room, closing the door quickly behind him.

"Crap, I'm sooo stupid!!" Derek's palm came up and smacked loudly against his forehead. Casey, on the other hand was sitting on her bed, bewildered by her step brother, yet again.

"He's so weird." She said finally as she turned off her lights and slipped under her covers.


	2. bacon bits

Chapter 2: bacon bits

Derek woke to a young girls voice screaming in his ears.

"Smerek!!! Get up!!" Marti was on the other side of Derek rolling him off the bed. He knew she wasn't strong enough to cause him and real harm. That is, before she him off the bed.

"Ow! Marti, that really hurt!" Derek picked himself up off that floor and reached his hand to his forehead to assess the damage . Nothing serious, so he figures he'd let her off this time. He took her under the arms and pretended to throw her out of the room. Marti giggles goofily and ran off to her room. Derek smiles and shut his door quietly. Forty- five minutes later he came out dressed and ready for the day. Walking down the stairs he was instantly hit with the smell of fried bacon and pancakes.

"Mmm, what's that amazing smell of amazing food that I smell?" he asked walking into the kitchen with his nose in the air.

"Ow! Hey, watch where you're going!" came the cry from the human shaped brick wall he found himself running into.

"Well, if you weren't so thick, I would have missed you" he said smirking at Casey as he passed her.

" Yeah…well….thmm" came her lame response followed by a childish stuck out tongue. Derek looked at her oddly, grabbed his breakfast, and walked away. He sat down in his recliner and turned on the morning sports. Casey, left to clean the mess, yet again, huffed as she threw away the empty carton of milk. She finally readied her breakfast and went over to sit on the couch next to Derek. Sensing her presence beside him, Derek looked up to find a very bored looking step-sister. '_Maybe I can cheer her up a little_' with that thought he reached over and stole the only piece of bacon she had on her plate. Before Casey could comprehend what had just happened he had already shoved the thin strip of meat into his mouth and chewed it up.

" Deeereek!" Casey shrieked looking down at her baconless plate.

"Sahwy Caybe…it wooked tho yummy!" he said dumbly with his mouth full, reminding Casey of a small chipmunk. Of course, she couldn't get rid of the image, so she settled for a burst of laughter. Derek sat stunned for a full minute before he actually swallowed and joined in the laughter. Casey looked l over at him as she began to calm down and giggled again.

"Do, do you- ya- k-knnnow what y-you looked like?" she asked between giggles

" I don't care, I was laughing at the face you made when I smiled!" he said triumphantly. Casey instantly stopped laughing. Derek, however, found this immensely more enjoyable.

" whatever." She commented dryly.

" Come on, Case!! Lighten up!" Derek reached over and squeezed he knee gently. A pulse shot through her body. She pulled away and stood up.

" I'm, uh, gunna go write that….English…..thing…"

" That essay?" Derek asked incredulously. Casey nodded as if to say 'duh?'

" Case, that's due next Thursday…I mean, I know you like to work a head, but… next Thursday's work?" Derek caught a glimmer of what might have been confusion. That is, if he knew better. However, knowing Casey for the last two years he knew Casey rarely let on her confusion, unless for seductions sake. And she wasn't trying to seduce him. Then it hit him.

" Casey, you're not _nervous_ are you?"

Casey's eyes grew to the size of tennis balls. "Nervous? Why would I be?" She laughed as she backed up the stairs while still facing Derek.

Sensing what was probable to happen Derek stood up and advanced towards his step- sister precariously.

" Cas-" was all he was able to get out before she had slipped and landed on her behind on the steps. Wincing she reached her hand up in search for the wooden banister. Instead, however, her palm met another, warmer, more masculine hand. Derek pulled her to her feet, sending flares and sparks up and down her body.

" Up ya go." Derek's free hand wrapped around her left, upper arm . Casey allowed Derek to pull her up and stood in front of him dazed as he checked to see if she was broken anywhere. His eyes net hers as he came back up and found her staring at him. Then he smiled and asked:

"Like what you see?" Causing her to find her focus again and look down to their joined hands. Her small hand twitched slightly in his. Trying to send the "_you can let go now_" message. He took it as the "_I want you_" message instead. The grip he held on her hand tightened. He pulled her close to him and whispered" I asked you a question earlier." In a low and husky, or as husky as his squeaky voice could manage, voice. His hand slipped to her waist as he began to question further. Casey, already just a little confused by what he was doing to her, began to panic and pushed him away. Casey swept a shaky hand across her forehead, dislodging any stay hairs that happened to plaster themselves to the nervous sweat that seemed to break out.

" I told you I'm not, and I have to go finish my French…problems…" she said as calmly as she could before stomping up the steps. Derek, however, was sitting on the arm of his chair counting the steps before he heard her fall with a few tumbles down to the first landing." 'And Casey McDonald makes a record of FIVE steps before she hits a tumbler folks!' and the crowd goes wild '_ahhhh_'!!" he said, adding the cheer reenactment." Oh shut up, it was a crayon." She said with a glare as she stomped up the steps once more.


	3. Denial

Casey remained in her room for the rest of the night. Lizzie knew something was up. She had just come from making a sandwich in the kitchen and she saw her oldest step-brother sitting on the arm of his favorite chair facing the stairs with his arms crossed and a strange grin on his face. Lizzie walked up to him and stood there for minute before she began waving a hand in front of his face.Lizzie jumped abruptly as a firm hand closed around her wrist suddenly.

"-Ah!"

"Lizzie isn't Casey bad around guys?" he asked, still grinning madly yet still not really looking at her.

"Uh, no, she's actually kinda good. It's the ones that she likes that get her all…trippy…" this seemed to bring Derek out of his stupor.

"The ones that she…likes….riiiight…" he eyes narrowed dangerously. Derek let go of Lizzie's hand and stood.

"I believe…"he started, his 'thinking' pose suddenly evident.

"You believe…what, exactly?" Lizzie asked, now _very_ intrigued.

"Nah, she couldn't…unless….yeah….ooooohh yeah…."

Lizzie stood there on the bottom step and ate her sandwich. She watched closely as her brother formulated a plan.

"Liz-" He walked over and stood in front of her.

"I need you to find out who it is that Casey likes."

"Why?" She asked with her mouth full of ham and cheese.

Derek stood there and looked at her as though she was crazy. She only shrugged.

"Because, _Elizabeth_" He threatened using her full name. "You are the only other female that Casey would tell these little bits of information willingly."

"Ooook, so?"

"So, ASK HER!" he said loudly

"ok,ok…chill,jeez." Lizzie relented and went to talk to Casey.

"Casey?" Lizzie asked as she knocked on her sister's door.

"Can I come in?" Lizzie heard a muffled sound that might have been a 'yes' if you squinted your left eye, and did the holky polky three times fast. She decided to be optimistic about it and proceeded to open the door. She found her sister sitting on her bed facing her window with her arms wrapped tightly around something, maybe a stuffed animal or something. Lizzie walked around the bed and sat next to her older sister.

"So…"

"Mmm"

"Watcha thinkin' 'bout?"

"Nothing" Casey replied noncommittally

"'Nothing' as in 'That guy I can't stop thinking about'?"

"No"

"Yes" Lizzie said with a knowing smile. Casey Blushed.

"Noo…" Casey lowered her head so her chin was resting on the top of the stuffed animal.

"Cough, liar, cough" Lizzie teased. Casey looked over at her sister and frowned sadly

"Yes" She said. Lizzie's eyes grew wide.

"Yes?"

Casey nodded. "Who is it?"

"Promise not to tell?" Casey asked, eyeing her little sister skeptically. Lizzie held out her pinkie

" I _ pinkie_ promise" Casey slowly agreed to this childish treaty.

"It's Derek" She stated, her pinkie still entwined with her sister's

"Derek…Zhukov, the Russian exchange student from your fifth grade class? The one with the really bad acne and overly abundant hair grease?"

"No (ew), Ventur-" Casey was interrupted by Lizzie's short scream.

"AHHHH!" Casey clamped a hand down over her mouth. "Lizzie, quiet down!" She whispered looking at the door. Lizzie pulled the hand down alittle

"What do you mean you're 'thinking about Derek, _OUR_ Derek, _Brother_ Derek…"

"Now brother is a very loose term…."

"Whatever"

"But, it's not like 'oh, I like him and I have a cruch on him' it's just…when he touched me I get this feeling. Like a thousand firecrackers going off inside me,. Then I get this…warm, glow-y feeling. Like hot chocolate on a cold Christmas day, or a bonfire at night when your\e roasting marshmallow-"

"Ok, I get it…"

"Anyway…that's like…weird right?"

"Well….sure…you said you 'didn't' like him, right?" Casey nodded, "So what else do you think it could be?" Casey bit her lip in thought then shrugged.

"Let me just say this" Lizzie prefaced getting off the bed " Denial, the state of refusing to admit the truth or reality of a situation, isn't healthy." Lizzie looked at her sister and walked out of her room.

Casey thought about that her younger sister had said and realized, maybe her sister was a little more grown up that she originally thought.

"EDWIN! Who said you play- IS THAT MY SOCCER BALL?! YOU- FISH!"

Then again, maybe she has a little more growing up to do.


	4. Skool

Casey rubbed her eyes tiredly as she grabbed her economy and American history books from her locker.

"Hey Casey!" came a jubilant voice from behind her. Casey turned to face Emily and regarded her with a wary expression.

"How are you?" her friend asked. Casey just yawned.

"One of those long nights again, huh?" Casey nodded. Emily hooked her arm through Casey's and helped her walk to class. Casey stumbled into her seat tiredly and placed her books on top of her desk. She rested her head on her arms and had already fallen asleep by the time the bell rang. For the rest of class she tried to sit up and not look uninterested as the teachers rambled on and on about seemingly mundane subjects. Of course, she had already read every one of the text books before the school year even started, so the review was meaningless, however many other students noticed her trite behavior and began to whisper when she passed by not really caring what they said. Casey snatched her bag and coat from her locker before she started walking home.

The autumn wind wafted strongly against her face, freezing her nose and cheeks. Casey closed her eyes to the blast of air and tightened her coat around her body.

"Hey." said the passenger of a car that stood before her. Casey opened her eyes and met the face of her step-brother leaning over the console in his car. "You need a ride? Wouldn't want your tiara to freeze off, Princess." Casey chose to ignore her follower and continued walking.

"Case, you need a ride. Just get in the car." Casey finally slowed enough to see that Derek had a look of genuine concern on his face. She kept walking.

"Casey, I'm serious! It's below zero out here and you have neither a hat nor a scarf. Please get in the car."

"No." she replied defiantly.

"No?"

"No, I don't want a ride." Casey's heart began to beat madly against her chest, threatening break free from her rib cage.

"Case, you're gunna get sick, or freeze to death. Which ever comes first."

"So? You never cared before! Why start now! Just go HOME Derek!" She walked on.

"Fine, forget it. All I wanted to do was show some consideration, but ya' know… I don't give a shit anymore. Take your time getting home." Derek said exasperatedly. They shared a look before Derek finally gave up and drove away. Derek sped off and turned at the next corner. Casey thought he must have forgotten his way home in all his anger, because the house was the opposite direction. She wrapped her arms protectively around herself and tried to warm up. She hated to admit it, but Derek was right. It was really cold out here, and she began to wonder if taking his offer up was the best idea after all.

Casey, lost in her own thoughts, shrieked loudly when two sets of hands grabbed her from behind and drug her into a deserted alley. She opened her mouth to scream fully when she found that one of the offenders had slapped a piece of duct tape over her lips. The other had tied her hands behinds her with what felt like a piece of cord.

_What are they doing?_ Casey wondered frantically. Her brain went into what Derek called "automatic-worst –case-scenario-mode" wehre she went through all the possible things they could do to her. One of the men began to rip the buttons on her coat while he tried to get the coat off when she saw a pair of head lightspass the alleyway. The car passed by slowly and went of. She closed her eyes in resignation as the two men continued violating her, Suddenly a loud slam of a car door was heard.

"CASEY!" called a voice

"CASE, Where are you?!" the mans voice sounded distant to Casey. Finally another figure came into her view. The man in front of her was thrown away from her into the brick wall. Derek gathered her into his arms, as the other had gone to see if the man on the wall was ok. Derek exited the alley carrying a battered and barely clothed Casey in his arms. He walked over to the passenger side and opened the door. He set Casey in the seat and ran over to the other side to get in. As he started the car he looked over to find his step-sister curled into a tight, shaking ball. He reached over and placed his hand on the top of her head and ran it through her hair in calming motions. He leaned over and whispered

"Casey, are you ok? Did he hurt you?"She was still fro a moment as she looked for an appropriate response. Of course he hurt her, She had NEVER had some one so violent touch her in such a…demeaning way. That man meant to touch her. That man MEANT to ruin her innocence. He almost had, but…

She shook her head slowly as she pushed her body closer to his and sat up.

"So he didn't…you know…" he asked breathing in deeply. She shook her head and watched as he let out a breath in relief.

"Good, cuz' I really don't know to go back and beat him up. I need you near me." He finished before he could fully understand what he said out loud. Casey sat up completely and looked down to pull her half ripped shirt across to cover the open skin on her stomach. Derek reached over and tucked piece of hair behind her ear. She turned to face and he saw she had tears streaming down her somewhat grimy face.

"Casey…I really…"He stopped and squeezed his eyes shut. He didn't want her to see the tears beginning to form in his eyes. Showing this much compassion was unusual for him, he had to try to keep up his…image…

"I thought I lost you. "

Too late.

"I was….I was so scared, Case." Derek finally pulled her to him in a crushing embrace. He pressed his face to the crook of her neck where her neck met her shoulder. Casey felt tears fall onto her skin before she raised her hand to his head and slowly ran her fingers through his hair. She lowered her head to rest tenderly against his for a moment. The warning bells in Derek's head began ringing and he lifted his head from her shoulder. Their eyes connected and they leaned in. Derek eyed Casey's dirt-covered face and trailed down to her lips.

Her lips that were still covered in Duct Tape. A small smile graced Derek's face as he reached over and pulled the tape off her lips. With the tape finally out of the way he leaned in again and held her face softly in his hands when, suddenly, he heard sobbing.

"What's wrong?" He asked, worried that she was hurt, and that one of the men really had done something to her.

"He-He….r-r-ripped muh-my only cooooat!" she wept hysterically into his neck.

Derek sat back in his seat and stared at the ceiling as he patted her back consolingly.

Sometimes...he just doesn't know what to do with this one.


	5. would you like fries with that?

Hey guys!

I am sooo sorry for the wait! Thank you to all for the beautiful reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

So, a little update as to where I've been and what's been going on lately: I graduates high school and entered college :D I am now a proud freshman (yet again!) and loving it. I am a graphic designs major and a minor in french. I still love writing, but my school work has taken prescedence over everything else...So writing happens rarely lately.

Oh yes...And Im pretty much ready for HP 7 this weekend? I get to see it Saturday, and IIIIII can't wait :)

question: how many of you are Harry Potter fans?

disclaimer: I DON'T OWN LIFE WITH DEREK! well...nah, Im just joshin ya.

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Derek took Casey to buy a new coat (and a hat…and a scarf). He asked her is she wanted to tell her mom and George about what happened. She shook her head with her eyes wide. Derek could understand her decision, what she went through was pretty terrifying. He wouldn't want to tell anyone either.

"How about this one?" Derek looked over to see Casey holding a long, fluffy hot pink coat. He raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Well, it would fit your royal personality nicely." He said laughing. Casey stopped smiling and glared. She turned to the rack and put the coat back on its hanger. Derek turned back around and looked around the store once more.

Then he saw it. The coat. He ran over and grabbed it from the rack. Derek raced back to Casey and held it up to her.

"What about this one?" Casey only stared at him with wide eyes. The coat was normal, waist-length, soft blue with a black belt wrapped around the middle. Felt, by the looks of it. By her reaction Derek could tell that Casey was in love. He'd seen that look multiple times on her face. The raised eyebrows, wide eyes, slightly opened mouth in a tiny smile. It was similar to the blissful face she got when she was dancing, or someone bought her a gift, or made her day with something little.

Honestly, this girl was easy to entertain.

"Yeah, it's great Case…just put it with the others" he said distractedly. He was so bored. Sure, Casey needed moral support and whatever- she'd just been through something traumatic. He was surprised she was holding up this well, but a man has needs.

And right now those needs were causing his stomach to rumble pretty severely. He grabbed his mid-section and turned with a desperate look towards the door. A tall, leggy blond was hanging up shirts on one of the racks closest to the entrance. She smiled shyly at him and bit her lip. He knew that look. He was TRAINED to know that look. Blondie wanted to play, and Derek was all but willing to let her. He let his eyes rove her body and stopped at the name tag. She was Becky, the store manager.

Derek looked down to the price tag on the coat in the pile and physically gasped.

"Fuckin—How am I….THREE HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS FOR A COAT? No Spacey, put this back." He quickly grabbed the coat back from Casey and slammed the hanger back on the rack, then whipped his head around to glare at the blonde (and extremely HOT) store manager and mouthed something dirty.

Derek grabbed Casey by the elbow and steered her away from the coat store. Casey could only sputter and occasionally glance back at the store. They had left, and she still didn't have a coat.

"Derek! I still need a—"

"No, you don't need one THAT bad! Good god, what a rip off! And to think I almost…" Derek's mouth shut instantly. Casey stopped in her tracks, causing Derek to stumble a little from the loss of momentum.

"You "almost" what, Derek? You almost…bought me a coat?" Casey put her hands on her hips. She knew exactly what he was _about_ to do and it had nothing to do with winter wear. She'd seen that blond giving him sex eyes. She wasn't blind. Not that she was surprised…or anything…

Derek couldn't even turn to face her. He knew she knew, but he was still ashamed, and that was a feeling Derek was NOT used to. Shame…what a funny little word. Rarely did the little emotion come up to bite him in the ass…like it was now. He felt ashamed when his dad caught him with a girl for the first time. He was 16 and it was Edwin's 12th birthday. He had told George that he had to "work on a project" with Stacie, a girl from his Earth Sciences class. He felt ashamed when he missed Casey's dance recital last year, knowing how excited she was for it (he came late and watched her through the small window in the locked door. He couldn't stop smiling until the family saw him and he had to fake indifference).

This was a different kind of shame, though. He was unaccustomed to this tinge in his heart.

Maybe he was just hungry.

"Casey, don't worry about it. We'll go and get you a coat somewhere cheaper." He said as he turned to face her. He still couldn't look her in the eyes, it just felt too weird. He knew she was glaring at him, and that made him feel even worse. Derek heard Casey sigh and forcefully step around him. So, she was peeved.

But she was headed in the direction of the food. This was progress.

Derek followed her evenly, staying behind her a few paces, just in case she felt too crowded. She reached the food court and stood in the line for a smoothie.

"Spacey…really?" he muttered. Casey whipped her head around so fast he was sure it would pop off. Her glare was self explanatory. He help up his hands and raised his hands in mock surrender. He could only let the girl have what she wants.

She ordered and looked at his expectantly. Derek took a quick step in the direction of the Burger Place, a small fast food chain with "the best burgers in history" (est. 1952).

Derek got his food and sat down at the table Casey had chosen. Casey sat quietly with her smoothie and a napkin, always the lady. Derek chanced a look at her face and what he saw scared him.

She was smiling.

"Um…Case? Is your smoothie flirting with you, or are you really just that excited?"

This brought Casey from her daze, her eyebrows furrowed and she cocked her head.

"OH! No, I was just-It's nothing." Casey said with a blush.

Derek only shrugged.

"Whatever." He said before digging into his burger.

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PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!


	6. Chapter 6

Oh my gosh. Thank you guys soooo much for all the reviews!

So thanksgiving was PRETTY family-tastic. My birthday was actually two weeks ago (yaaay, I'm 19 woopidoo!) so my mom was like "what do you want for your birthday?" I told her that I wanted a cajun turkey, because my mom makes a KILLER cajun turkey. Soooo I celebrated with that and PUNKIN PIE! I love my life.

Also, college is great. I'm still getting into the hang of it...the whole block scheduling thing is really new, so I have to get used to it. But whatev.

Ok, ok, y'all didn't come to listen to me talk about me. BA HA HA! So on with the fic!

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone except my fish...:)

* * *

The two had finished their lunch and sat peacefully in each other's company.

Meaning that, mid-meal, Derek had arbitrarily turned his chair completely around, making a high screeching noise against the linoleum on the floor in the food court. He sat, ogling at the girls that passed by. Ever one in a while he would see a girl look at him with a smug look in her eyes, it took a considerable amount of self- control to only smirk back. In response the girl would sway her hips a little farther and saunter past.

Casey could only roll her eyes. If she didn't know Derek, she would be appalled by his actions. However she knew he only did it to "keep up appearances", some sort of alpha-dog-macho-male code thing, so she didn't say anything. She only sat quietly behind him and watched as the girls, unfailingly, took notice of his good looks and possible high status.

Sometimes Casey imagine what they could have been if their parents didn't get married. She would be the last to admit it to anyone other than her diary, but she definitely found him attractive. Lizzie was right. Casey bit her lip as she remembered occasions when he would exit the family bathroom with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. She could only cover her eyes as he passed and scream at him about "public indecency".

Even though she knew very well that they were not in public.

She sighed and closed her eyes. She felt the tears coming and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. Sometimes life just wasn't fair. She wished that she was free to admit what she _really_ felt about him. Granted, it would most likely scare him away. She didn't care. She was tired of tripping and stuttering around him. Casey knew those were the symptoms she got when she fell in "like" with someone. It wasn't difficult to find out.

"I'm going to get some napkins. You're horribly messy." She told Derek to his back. She waited for him to retort, but he only threw a careless wave over his shoulder. Casey rolled her eyes again and walked away.

When she returned with a handful of thin, paper napkins she was surprised to find a seemingly tall, busty blond sitting in her seat. Casey could only gawk. She was sure that she hadn't taken that long to get the napkins. Sure they were on the other end of the food court, but she walks pretty fast. Casey stood far enough away that Derek wouldn't notice her and she watched as the two interacted.

The busty girl laughed with an airy laugh. Her smile was wide and full of teeth, and she was beautiful. Casey looked down at her dirty jeans and Derek's extra t-shirt that was two sizes too big for her and she couldn't help but feel ugly. She knew that her body was fairly small from dancing and various sports, but that didn't change the fact that this blond girl that Derek had only just met captured his attention in mere seconds.

After a few words, Busty would touch his arm and laugh again. This went on for what felt like hours before Casey couldn't take anymore. She walked over, deliberately trying not to run into any chairs or people, and stopped right behind Derek's chair. The blond woman stopped talking mid-sentence and looked up at Casey with a dazzling smile.

"Can I help you?" She asked, not even batting one of her fake, thick black eyelashes.

"Yes. You're in my seat." Casey said after a pause.

The blond woman turn around and looked at the back the chair, then to the part that back previously rested upon then again up to Casey.

"Well, I don't see your name on it anywhere. Are you sure this is the right table?" Busty asked in a calming voice. She sounded as though she was trying to pacify a child that behaved incorrectly.

"Yes, I do have the right table, thank you for asking. Now get out of my chair." Casey said steadily.

"I don't want to. Now run along, I'm not finished talking here." She said in that same patronizing voice.

Casey only glared at her and threw the napkins over Derek's shoulder with a loud SLAP!

Inside she grinned smugly when she saw Derek flinch slightly at the noise. She knew he knew she was pissed. Casey hardly let him speak to her that way, let alone someone she didn't know.

"How dare you." Casey gritted out. This girl barely knew her and she felt that tone was ok? Who did she think she was?

At this Derek, who had been glaring at the girl across from him, sprung from his seat. He knew, after years of tormenting Casey, when enough was enough. He grabbed her by the shoulders and steered her away from the table. Casey only watched the girl as she sat smugly with her arms crossed. Blondie slowly pulled out a carefully manicured hand and waved her fingers at Casey, as though she were waving her claws.

Casey struggled against Derek and tried to leap towards the other woman, but Derek was stronger.

"Case, no. Back down. I'll deal with her." He told her soothingly. He knew Casey needed to calm down before she went all "feminist-I-will-overcome" on her ass. However, the look in her eyes was worse than the competitive anger he invoked.

Casey's eyebrows read sadness, while her jaw said anger. This blond girl that had never met her before had somehow managed to injure Casey's pride. Derek watched as her eyes welled with unshed tears.

He turned to face the other girl again.

"You should go." He told her sternly. The blond, whose attention was set on Casey, looked back at Derek with a confused expression.

"I'm sorry? Did you just tell me to go?" She said standing up slowly

"Yes, now leave. You've said enough today, no one talks to her like that. " Derek set his jaw and held up his hands to the girl.

Then everything stopped. Derek felt two hands grab one of his own. He turned to face his step- sister and found her looking at his hand with a trembling lip. Derek looked down and saw.

The blond had written her number on his hand in permanent marker.

Casey lifted her eyes to Derek's before she let his hand go. Derek made a move to stop her but she cringed away and shook her head. Casey turned on her heels and walked away with her arms around her-self, making her look small if not smaller.

"God, she is one hell of a jealous girlfriend, she's almost a nut case. Where'd you pick her up?" a sultry voice said from behind him.

Derek turned his head and stared at this woman and shook his head slightly.

"She isn't my girlfriend." He said before walking swiftly away.

* * *

REVIEW IF YOU LIKED IT!

...or even if you didn't.

challenge: what did you do for thanksgiving?

or: what would you like to see me write in the future?

I love you all, thanks again for the lovely reviews and favorite and story watches. Those don't go un-noticed, I assure you.

hugs and kisses all around.

(REVIEW :) )


	7. Author's note :

Dear Readers.

…I just….I can't even…

You are all too much. I just read over my newest reviews and I just wanted to let every one of you know that I am TERRIBLY sorry about this hiatus.

As I hope all of you know, I am a freshman in college, so my work load has been crazy huge. I haven't been able to write anything really, and that alone is enough to stress me out. I'm not using this as an excuse, please understand, I genuinely want to write. I just have little to no time, or am so stressed that I get stuck in an awful (horribly long) writer's block.

Now, on that note, I want everyone to know that I made it through my first year Yay me!

So, as a happy party to me, I want each of you to send in one scenario you want to see happen sometime in the story. I will try to put everyone in, but it may take time.

You can either send me a message, or send it to my email ()

Also, if you just want to chat, I also have a twitter. I would love it if you guys stopped by and dropped me a tweet I love hearing from you.

So, now that I'm finished telling you guys just how AWESOME each and every one of you are for even READING my story, I will post the next chapter in the next few days My treat to you for commenting and keeping up.

THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH! I LOVE YOU ALL!

All my love, fantafae


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